Census-designated place · Matanuska-Susitna Borough, Alaska

Big Lake, Alaska

Big Lake is a census-designated place in Matanuska-Susitna Borough, Alaska, part of the Anchorage, AK metro area. It has 3,585 residents. Big Lake, Alaska has a quality-of-life score of 24 out of 100 (low), ranking #11,846 of 15,651 US cities and towns. Within Alaska it ranks #62 of 71 cities and towns. It ranks best on median Air Quality Index (low), drought exposure (low) and high school diploma or higher (high). It ranks worst on distance to an Amtrak station (high), firearm deaths (high) and suicide rate (high).

24Low

Quality-of-life score: #11,846 of 15,651 cities and towns
Alaska: #62 of 71 in AK
Population: 3,585 (2020-2024)
Land area: 115 mi²
Density: 31.1 /mi²
FIPS code: 0207070

Percentile-based score (100 is the best in the country) from 66 of 80 indicators, with the default “Explorer” weights.

Open in the map

Scores by category

Each category averages its indicators' percentile scores among US cities and towns.

Safety10#14,004/15,637
Economy61#6,121/15,631
Housing69#4,584/14,977
Health29#11,066/15,609
Healthcare24#11,940/15,650
Environment—
Education37#9,838/15,649
Infrastructure25#11,796/15,650
Community35#10,139/15,651
Leisure & amenities23#12,081/15,651

Strengths · Weaknesses

Indicators where Big Lake, Alaska ranks highest and lowest among US cities and towns (score = percentile, 100 = best). Values marked “Matanuska-Susitna Borough value” are the county’s: the source publishes no figure for this city or town, and the county holding most of its residents stands in.

Strengths

Median Air Quality Index · low9
99/100Alaska 232025U.S. Environmental Protection AgencyMatanuska-Susitna Borough value
Drought exposure · low0%
98/100Alaska 0%United States 43%Oct 2025–Sep 2026National Drought Mitigation Center (University of Nebraska–Lincoln), USDA and NOAAMatanuska-Susitna Borough value
High school diploma or higher · high94.2%
96/100Alaska 93.6%United States 89.6%2020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B15003
Arts, entertainment and recreation · high6.1 /10k
81/100Alaska 9.1 /10kUnited States 5.5 /10k2025U.S. Bureau of Labor StatisticsMatanuska-Susitna Borough value
Preventable hospital stays · low2,208 /100k
79/100Alaska 2,100 /100kUnited States 2,769 /100k2023University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteMatanuska-Susitna Borough value
Time spent in the emergency room · low134 min
78/100Alaska 138 minUnited States 170 minOct 2024–Sep 2025Centers for Medicare & Medicaid ServicesMatanuska-Susitna Borough value

Weaknesses

Distance to an Amtrak station · high1,322 mi
1/100Alaska 1,315 miUnited States 43 mi2026Federal Aviation Administration · Bureau of Transportation Statistics · U.S. Census BureauMatanuska-Susitna Borough value
Firearm deaths · high31.2 /100k
2/100Alaska 26.2 /100kUnited States 12.1 /100kMay 2025–Apr 2026Centers for Disease Control and PreventionProvisional dataMatanuska-Susitna Borough value
Suicide rate · high33.0 /100k
2/100Alaska 30.4 /100kUnited States 14.1 /100kMay 2025–Apr 2026Centers for Disease Control and PreventionProvisional dataMatanuska-Susitna Borough value
Flu vaccinations · low23.0%
2/100Alaska 29.0%United States 44.0%2023University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteMatanuska-Susitna Borough value
Grocery stores · low0.6 /10k
3/100Alaska 1.7 /10kUnited States 1.7 /10k2025U.S. Bureau of Labor StatisticsMatanuska-Susitna Borough value
Pharmacies · low0.3 /10k
3/100Alaska 0.6 /10kUnited States 1.8 /10k2025U.S. Bureau of Labor StatisticsMatanuska-Susitna Borough value

Trends

The largest changes over about five years, next to the country's over the same periods.

PopulationRising
2,678 (2015-2019) → 3,585 (2020-2024)
+34%5 yearsCensus table B01003US 328,329,953 → 340,003,797
Uninsured residents (under 65)Improving
25.9% (2015-2019) → 14.4% (2020-2024)
−11 pts5 yearsCensus table B27010US 10.8% → 9.8%
Median household incomeImproving
$54,324 (2015-2019) → $81,406 (2020-2024)
+50%5 yearsCensus table B19013US $65,712 → $81,604
Unemployment rateImproving
12.6% (2015-2019) → 3.1% (2020-2024)
−9.5 pts5 yearsCensus table B23025US 3.7% → 4.0%
Broadband subscriptionsImproving
82.0% (2015-2019) → 90.6% (2020-2024)
+8.6 pts5 yearsCensus table B28002US 82.7% → 91.0%
Rent-burdened householdsWorsening
52.2% (2015-2019) → 58.7% (2020-2024)
+6.5 pts5 yearsCensus table B25070US 49.6% → 51.1%

What changed in five years

How each measure moved between two periods about five years apart, read against whether more or less is better, the published margin of error and the same change in other places.

Over about five years, Big Lake, Alaska improved on 4 of 13 measures with a comparison and declined on 0. 9 moved within the margin of error and 0 barely changed.

Earlier (2015-2019)
Latest (2020-2024)
Lower standingHigher standing

Position is the place's standing among cities and towns: further right is better, whichever way the measure counts.

Improved4

Uninsured−11 points25.9% → 14.4%
Household income+50%$54,324 → $81,406
Poverty−5.4 points16.8% → 11.4%
Broadband+8.6 points82.0% → 90.6%

Declined0

No measure declined by more than its margin of error.

All 13 measures

Change of every measure of Big Lake, Alaska between two periods about five years apart
Measure	Before	After	Change	Reading	Favourable vs peers
Average commute time	38.7 min2015-2019	42.7 min2020-2024	+4.0 min	Within the margin of error	14%
Bachelor's degree or higher	13.5%2015-2019	17.4%2020-2024	+3.9 points	Within the margin of error	59%
Broadband subscriptions	82.0%2015-2019	90.6%2020-2024	+8.6 points	Improved	53%
Child poverty rate	19.0%2015-2019	14.1%2020-2024	−4.9 points	Within the margin of error	68%
Effective property tax rate	0.93%2015-2019	0.79%2020-2024	−0.1 points	Within the margin of error	46%
High school diploma or higher	92.7%2015-2019	94.2%2020-2024	+1.5 points	Within the margin of error	53%
Home price to income ratio	3.8×2015-2019	3.7×2020-2024	−0.1×	Within the margin of error	85%
Income inequality (Gini index)	0.4602015-2019	0.4332020-2024	−0.028	Within the margin of error	73%
Median household income	$54,3242015-2019	$81,4062020-2024	+50%	Improved	84%
Poverty rate	16.8%2015-2019	11.4%2020-2024	−5.4 points	Improved	82%
Public transit commuters	0.0%2015-2019	0.0%2020-2024	0 points	Within the margin of error	60%
Rent-burdened households	52.2%2015-2019	58.7%2020-2024	+6.5 points	Within the margin of error	33%
Uninsured residents (under 65)	25.9%2015-2019	14.4%2020-2024	−11 points	Improved	97%

“Against peers” compares the change with the same change in the 14640 cities and towns that have the same two periods. It describes how common a change is, not why it happened.

Sources: American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates. Values are the latest and the one five years earlier of the same publisher dataset; datasets that changed publisher in between are never compared.

Survey estimates (American Community Survey) compare the two most recent 5-year windows that do not share years, so the margin of error of the difference holds. The 2015-2019 window predates the pandemic and 2020-2024 includes it.
A change counts only when it is larger than 1.645 times the square root of the two standard errors squared, summed (a 90% margin). Measures published without a margin must change by at least 5% to count.
“Against peers” compares the change with the same change in the 15651 cities and towns that have the same two periods. It describes how common a change is, not why it happened.
Standing is a percentile among the same places: 0 is the lowest value on the measure (or the worst when lower is better), 100 the best.

Cities and towns like Big Lake, Alaska five years ago that improved

The places whose measures looked most like those of Big Lake, Alaska in the earlier period, ranked by how many measures improved beyond the margin of error, minus how many declined. A comparison of published data, not a forecast and not advice.

For comparison, Big Lake, Alaska itself moved +4.3 points in standing on average over the same 9 measures (standings of all places average about zero).

How the ranking works

Similarity is the root-mean-square difference of standings in the earlier period over the measures most places have. Places are ranked by measures that improved beyond the margin of error minus those that declined (a count that estimation noise in small places cannot inflate), then by the mean change of standing over the measures a place has in both periods. Only places with more improvements than declines and a rise in standing are listed. Standings are relative, so a place can improve in absolute terms and still lose standing.

Who lives here

Age, race and education of residents, from the American Community Survey. Shares are of all residents (age), residents of every origin (race) or adults 25 and over (education).

Age and sex

3,585 residents (±357)

Men
Women

80 and over†
70–79†
60–69

Income

How household income is spread, not just the middle: each bar is the share of households in that income range.

Household income

1,461 households (±116)

Big Lake, Alaska
Alaska share

Under $25k11%†164
$25k–50k17%254
$50k–75k17%249

Homes

Who owns and who rents, what homes cost, and what the housing stock looks like.

Owners and renters

1,461 households (±116)

Big Lake, Alaska
Alaska share

Own82%1,197
Rent18%†264

No change since 2015–2019 is larger than the margin of error.

† Wide margin of error (more than 30% of the estimate): read with care.

Table view

Getting to work

How workers travel to their job and how long it takes them.

How people get to work

1,641 workers (±247)

Big Lake, Alaska
Alaska share

Drive alone64%1,047
Carpool7.2%†118
Public transit0.0%0

Jobs and pay

What the largest occupations here pay, from the Bureau of Labor Statistics' Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics survey.

The Bureau of Labor Statistics publishes pay by metro area, not by county or city. The metro area page lists its largest occupations and lets you look up any job.

Pay in the Anchorage, AK

Local businesses

Employer businesses and sole proprietors by industry, per resident and against the state and the nation. Counts of businesses next to counts of people, not a measure of demand.

The Census Bureau publishes business counts by county, not by city, so these are the figures of Matanuska-Susitna Borough, the county holding most of Big Lake's residents.

Matanuska-Susitna Borough has 2,822 employer establishments, 245 for every 10,000 residents (0.99× the US rate of 248; 0.81× Alaska's), with 23,971 paid employees at an average annual pay of $57,028. The Census Bureau also counts 9,365 nonemployer businesses, mostly sole proprietors.

Establishments: 2,822; 9,365 nonemployers
Per 10,000 residents: 245; US 248 · Alaska 302
Paid employees: 23,971
Average annual pay: $57,028; US $68,342

Employer establishments, employees, average pay and nonemployers of Matanuska-Susitna Borough by industry, with the density per resident against the nation

Specialty trade contractors	368	31.9	2.06×More than typical	1,650	$87,131	693
Ambulatory health care services	280	24.3	1.17×About typical	2,389	$77,492	300
Construction of buildings	181	15.7	2.08×More than typical	1,283	$90,944	391
Restaurants and other eating places	169	14.7	0.80×Fewer than typical	2,495	$24,430	39
Offices of other health practitioners	124	10.8	1.77×More than typical	658	$55,419	197
Lessors of real estate	121	10.5	0.85×About typical	264	$43,386	831
Building equipment contractors	114	9.9	1.64×More than typical	727	$77,857	84
Foundation, structure and building exterior contractors	98	8.5	2.70×More than typical	271	$101,542	113
Building finishing contractors	94	8.2	2.15×More than typical	378	$56,172	247
Services to buildings and dwellings	94	8.2	1.21×About typical	455	$43,312	390
Real estate agents and brokers	71	6.2	1.27×More than typical	107	$47,028	258
Automotive repair and maintenance	65	5.6	1.12×About typical	482	$51,720	129

Rank places for an industry Open Matanuska-Susitna Borough

County Business Patterns (2023); Nonemployer Statistics (2024)

Per-resident figures divide by the population estimate of 2023: 115,188 residents here, 336,755,052 in the United States. County Business Patterns counts establishments in 2023; the Nonemployer Statistics count businesses in 2024.
“More than typical” is a density at least 1.25 times the nation's per resident, “fewer” at most 0.8 times, with at least 10 establishments. It compares counts of businesses with counts of people: it says nothing about demand, incomes, size, quality or profit, and visitors and commuters are not residents.
The Census Bureau adds noise to employment and payroll to protect confidentiality, and withholds some figures: an industry with few establishments can show employees or pay as unavailable.
Industries overlap: a narrower industry (full-service restaurants) is part of a broader one (restaurants), so the rows do not add up.
Industries follow the North American Industry Classification System; the two surveys use different editions (NAICS 2017 and 2022), which this page matches industry by industry.

Federal contracts performed here

In FY2026, an estimated $0 of federal contract obligations were for work performed in Big Lake, Alaska: $0 per resident (US $1,994).

Obligations: $0
Per resident: $0; US $1,994
Sole-source: —; US 30%
Single offer: —; US 8.8%

A signal is a reason to look closer, not evidence of wrongdoing: most sole-source awards are lawful and justified.

Top buying agencies

Top recipients

Spending by fiscal year

9.7KFY2017
-7.2KFY2018
430.2KFY2020
-430.2KFY2021

What was bought

Source: Federal contract transactions (Federal Procurement Data System) (U.S. Department of the Treasury, USAspending.gov), data current to Oct 3, 2026, loaded Oct 3, 2026.

How this is estimated

Agencies report each contract action's place of performance as a county and a ZIP code. A ZIP code's money is split among the cities it covers by the share of its land inside each (Census 2020 ZIP code tabulation areas); the part outside city limits stays with the county.

The place of performance is what the contracting agency reports, often the contractor's office rather than where the work happens.
Shares are of land, not of people or businesses: a ZIP code that is mostly rural land but has its offices in town gives the town less than it should.
ZIP codes that are not mapped areas (post office boxes, the unique ZIP codes of large federal sites and companies) stay with their county, unless one city covers nearly all of it.
Counts of actions and awards include those only partly in Big Lake, Alaska, so they do not add up across cities.

Big Lake, Alaska's figures are part of those of Matanuska-Susitna Borough, AK ($33.1M in FY2026), never added to them: 0.0% of that total.

Grants and other federal assistance are counted by county here, not split among cities: Big Lake is mostly in Matanuska-Susitna Borough.

See federal money in Matanuska-Susitna Borough

Representation in Congress

Members serving today, with their record in the current Congress (party-unity votes cast with their caucus, roll calls missed). Not a grade.

Big Lake, Alaska is represented in the 119th Congress by these members.

House

Nicholas J. Begich IIIR-AK · 100% of residentsWith party 98%Missed 0.9%

Senate

Explore Congress The 2026 races

County

A city can lie in several counties. Some indicators are published for counties only: the page marks them.

Matanuska-Susitna Borough42100% of residents

Metro area

The metro or micro area the city belongs to.

Anchorage, AK67

Other cities and towns in Matanuska-Susitna Borough

Largest first.

Similar cities and towns

Closest indicator profiles across the country (no model: score distances).

Data and sources

Latest published value of each indicator; periods differ by source. Values flagged by their publisher are marked.

PLACES: Local Data for Better HealthCenters for Disease Control and Prevention · release 2025
Local Area Unemployment StatisticsU.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics · release 2025
American Community Survey 5-Year EstimatesU.S. Census Bureau · release 2017-2024
Population Estimates ProgramU.S. Census Bureau · release 2025
Small Area Health Insurance EstimatesU.S. Census Bureau · release 2024
Small Area Income and Poverty EstimatesU.S. Census Bureau · release 2024
County Health Rankings & RoadmapsUniversity of Wisconsin Population Health Institute · release 2022-2025+2026-03-supplement

JSON · /api/v1/places/0207070

Scores by category

Strengths · Weaknesses

Strengths

Weaknesses

Trends